Jesus and the woman taken in adultery (or the ) is a passage (
pericope
A pericope (; Greek , "a cutting-out") in rhetoric is a set of verses that forms one coherent unit or thought, suitable for public reading from a text, now usually of sacred scripture. Also can be used as a way to identify certain themes in a cha ...
New Testament
The New Testament grc, Ἡ Καινὴ Διαθήκη, transl. ; la, Novum Testamentum. (NT) is the second division of the Christian biblical canon. It discusses the teachings and person of Jesus, as well as events in first-century Christ ...
. It has been the subject of much scholarly discussion.
In the passage,
Jesus
Jesus, likely from he, יֵשׁוּעַ, translit=Yēšūaʿ, label=Hebrew/Aramaic ( AD 30 or 33), also referred to as Jesus Christ or Jesus of Nazareth (among other names and titles), was a first-century Jewish preacher and religious ...
was teaching in the
Second Temple
The Second Temple (, , ), later known as Herod's Temple, was the reconstructed Temple in Jerusalem between and 70 CE. It replaced Solomon's Temple, which had been built at the same location in the United Kingdom of Israel before being inherited ...
after coming from the
Mount of Olives
The Mount of Olives or Mount Olivet ( he, הַר הַזֵּיתִים, Har ha-Zeitim; ar, جبل الزيتون, Jabal az-Zaytūn; both lit. 'Mount of Olives'; in Arabic also , , 'the Mountain') is a mountain ridge east of and adjacent to Jeru ...
. A group of scribes and Pharisees confronts Jesus, interrupting his teaching. They bring in a woman, accusing her of committing
adultery
Adultery (from Latin ''adulterium'') is extramarital sex that is considered objectionable on social, religious, moral, or legal grounds. Although the sexual activities that constitute adultery vary, as well as the social, religious, and legal ...
, claiming she was caught in the very act. They tell Jesus that the punishment for someone like her should be stoning, as prescribed by Mosaic Law. Jesus begins to write something on the ground using his finger; when the woman's accusers continue their challenge, he states that the one who is without sin is the one who should cast the first stone at her. The accusers and congregants depart, realizing not one of them is without sin either, leaving Jesus alone with the woman. Jesus asks the woman if anyone has condemned her and she answers no. Jesus says that he, too, does not condemn her, and tells her to go and sin no more.
There is now a broad academic consensus that the passage is a later interpolation added after the earliest known manuscripts of the
Gospel of John
The Gospel of John ( grc, Εὐαγγέλιον κατὰ Ἰωάννην, translit=Euangélion katà Iōánnēn) is the fourth of the four canonical gospels. It contains a highly schematic account of the ministry of Jesus, with seven "sig ...
. Although it is included in most modern translations (one notable exception being the
New World Translation of the Holy Scriptures
The New World Translation of the Holy Scriptures (NWT) is a translation of the Bible published by the Watch Tower Bible and Tract Society; it is used and distributed by Jehovah's Witnesses. The New Testament portion was released first, in 1950, ...
) it is typically noted as a later interpolation, as it is by Novum Testamentum Graece NA28. This has been the view of "most NT scholars, including most ''evangelical'' NT scholars, for well over a century" (written in 2009). The passage appears to have been included in some texts by the 4th century, and became generally accepted by the 5th century.
The passage
John 7:53–8:11 in the
New Revised Standard Version
The New Revised Standard Version (NRSV) is an English translation of the Bible published in 1989 by the National Council of Churches.Codex Vaticanus
The Codex Vaticanus ( The Vatican, Bibl. Vat., Vat. gr. 1209), designated by siglum B or 03 (in the Gregory-Aland numbering), δ 1 ( von Soden), is a fourth-century Christian manuscript of a Greek Bible, containing the majority of the Greek Old ...
, which is paleographically dated to the early 300s, does contain a mark at the end of John chapter 7 with an umlaut in the margin alongside a distinctive blank space following the end of the Gospel of John, which would convey that the manuscript copyist was aware of additional text following the end of
John 21
John 21 is the twenty-first and final chapter of the Gospel of John in the New Testament of the Christian Bible. It contains an account of a post-crucifixion appearance in Galilee, which the text describes as the third time Jesus had appeared ...
– which is where the pericope adulterae is found in the ''f''-1 group of manuscripts.
The Latin
Vulgate
The Vulgate (; also called (Bible in common tongue), ) is a late-4th-century Latin translation of the Bible.
The Vulgate is largely the work of Jerome who, in 382, had been commissioned by Pope Damasus I to revise the Gospels u ...
Gospel of John, produced by Jerome in 383, was based on the Greek manuscripts which Jerome considered ancient exemplars at that time and which contained the passage. Jerome reports that the pericope adulterae was found in its usual place in "many Greek and Latin manuscripts" in Rome and the Latin West. This is also confirmed by other Latin Fathers of the 300s and 400s, including both
Ambrose of Milan
Ambrose of Milan ( la, Aurelius Ambrosius; ), venerated as Saint Ambrose, ; lmo, Sant Ambroeus . was a theologian and statesman who served as Bishop of Milan from 374 to 397. He expressed himself prominently as a public figure, fiercely promot ...
, and
Augustine
Augustine of Hippo ( , ; la, Aurelius Augustinus Hipponensis; 13 November 354 – 28 August 430), also known as Saint Augustine, was a theologian and philosopher of Berbers, Berber origin and the bishop of Hippo Regius in Numidia (Roman pr ...
.
Pope Leo I
Pope Leo I ( 400 – 10 November 461), also known as Leo the Great, was bishop of Rome from 29 September 440 until his death. Pope Benedict XVI said that Leo's papacy "was undoubtedly one of the most important in the Church's history."
Leo was ...
(Pope from 440 to 461) cited the passage in his 62nd sermon, mentioning that Jesus said "to the adulteress who was brought to him, 'Neither will I condemn you; go and sin no more.'" In the early 400s,
Augustine of Hippo
Augustine of Hippo ( , ; la, Aurelius Augustinus Hipponensis; 13 November 354 – 28 August 430), also known as Saint Augustine, was a theologian and philosopher of Berber origin and the bishop of Hippo Regius in Numidia, Roman North Af ...
used the passage extensively, and from his writings, it is also clear that his contemporary
Faustus of Mileve
Faustus of Mileve was a Manichaean bishop of the fourth century. He is now remembered for his encounter with Augustine of Hippo, in Carthage around 383. He was from Milevis, Numidia (modern Algeria). From a poor, pagan background, he had become a ...
also used it. Augustine claimed that the passage was specifically targeted and improperly excluded from some manuscripts:
"Certain persons of little faith, or rather enemies of the true faith, fearing, I suppose, lest their wives should be given impunity in sinning, removed from their manuscripts the Lord's act of forgiveness toward the adulteress, as if he who had said, Sin no more, had granted permission to sin." – Augustine, De Adulterinis Conjugiis 2:6–7.
The
pericope
A pericope (; Greek , "a cutting-out") in rhetoric is a set of verses that forms one coherent unit or thought, suitable for public reading from a text, now usually of sacred scripture. Also can be used as a way to identify certain themes in a cha ...
does not occur in the Greek Gospel manuscripts from Egypt. The Pericope Adulterae is not in 𝔓66 or in 𝔓75, both of which have been assigned to the late 100s or early 200s, nor in two important manuscripts produced in the early or mid 300s,
Sinaiticus
The Codex Sinaiticus (Shelfmark: London, British Library, Add MS 43725), designated by siglum [Aleph] or 01 (in the Gregory-Aland numbering of New Testament manuscripts), δ 2 (in the von Soden numbering of New Testament manuscripts) ...
and Vaticanus. The first surviving Greek manuscript to contain the pericope is the Latin-Greek diglot
Codex Bezae
The Codex Bezae Cantabrigiensis, designated by siglum D or 05 (in the Gregory-Aland numbering of New Testament manuscripts), δ 5 (in the von Soden of New Testament manuscript), is a codex of the New Testament dating from the 5th century writ ...
, produced in the 400s or 500s (but displaying a form of text which has affinities with "Western" readings used in the 100s and 200s). Codex Bezae is also the earliest surviving Latin manuscript to contain it. Out of 23 Old Latin manuscripts of John 7–8, seventeen contain at least part of the pericope, and represent at least three transmission-streams in which it was included.
Many modern textual critics have speculated that it was "certainly not part of the original text of St. John's Gospel."'Pericope adulterae', in FL Cross (ed.), ''The Oxford Dictionary of the Christian Church'', (New York:
Oxford University Press
Oxford University Press (OUP) is the university press of the University of Oxford. It is the largest university press in the world, and its printing history dates back to the 1480s. Having been officially granted the legal right to print books ...
, 2005). The
Jerusalem Bible
''The Jerusalem Bible'' (JB or TJB) is an English translation of the Bible published in 1966 by Darton, Longman & Todd. As a Catholic Bible, it includes 73 books: the 39 books shared with the Hebrew Bible, along with the seven deuterocanonica ...
claims "the author of this passage is not John". Some have also claimed that no Greek Church Father had taken note of the passage before the 1100s.
However, in 1941 a large collection of the Greek writings of
Didymus the Blind
Didymus the Blind (alternatively spelled Dedimus or Didymous) (c. 313398) was a Christian theologian in the Church of Alexandria, where he taught for about half a century. He was a student of Origen, and, after the Second Council of Constantinop ...
(313–398 AD) was discovered in Egypt, in which Didymus states that "We find in certain gospels" an episode in which a woman was accused of a sin, and was about to be stoned, but Jesus intervened "and said to those who were about to cast stones, 'He who has not sinned, let him take a stone and throw it. If anyone is conscious in himself not to have sinned, let him take a stone and smite her.' And no one dared," and so forth. As Didymus was referring to the Gospels typically used in the churches in his time, this reference appears to establish that the passage was accepted as authentic and commonly present in many Greek manuscripts known in Alexandria and elsewhere from the 300s onwards.
The subject of Jesus' writing on the ground was fairly common in art, especially from the
Renaissance
The Renaissance ( , ) , from , with the same meanings. is a period in European history marking the transition from the Middle Ages to modernity and covering the 15th and 16th centuries, characterized by an effort to revive and surpass ideas ...
Ambrose
Ambrose of Milan ( la, Aurelius Ambrosius; ), venerated as Saint Ambrose, ; lmo, Sant Ambroeus . was a theologian and statesman who served as Bishop of Milan from 374 to 397. He expressed himself prominently as a public figure, fiercely promo ...
, that the words written were ("earth accuses earth"; a reference to the end of verse
Genesis
Genesis may refer to:
Bible
* Book of Genesis, the first book of the biblical scriptures of both Judaism and Christianity, describing the creation of the Earth and of mankind
* Genesis creation narrative, the first several chapters of the Book of ...
Codex Egberti
The Codex Egberti is a gospel book illuminated in the scriptorium of the Reichenau Monastery for Egbert, bishop of Trier (980–993). It is now held in the city library of Trier
Trier ( , ; lb, Tréier ), formerly known in English as Trèves ...
''. This is very probably a matter of guesswork based on
Jeremiah
Jeremiah, Modern: , Tiberian: ; el, Ἰερεμίας, Ieremíās; meaning " Yah shall raise" (c. 650 – c. 570 BC), also called Jeremias or the "weeping prophet", was one of the major prophets of the Hebrew Bible. According to Jewish ...
17:13. There have been other theories about what Jesus would have written.
Interpretation
This episode, and its message of mercy and forgiveness balanced with a call to holy living, have endured in Christian thought. Both "let him who is without sin, cast the first stone" and "go, and sin no more" have found their way into common usage. The English idiomatic phrase to " cast the first stone" is derived from this passage.
The passage has been taken as confirmation of Jesus' ability to write, otherwise only suggested by implication in the Gospels, but the word in John 8:8 could mean "draw" as well as "write".
Mosaic Law
Deuteronomy 22:22–25 states:
In this passage and also in Leviticus 20:10, "death is fixed as the penalty of adultery", applicable to both the man and the woman concerned. However, "''stoning'' as the form of death is only specified when a betrothed virgin is violated".
Textual history
According to
Eusebius of Caesarea
Eusebius of Caesarea (; grc-gre, Εὐσέβιος ; 260/265 – 30 May 339), also known as Eusebius Pamphilus (from the grc-gre, Εὐσέβιος τοῦ Παμφίλου), was a Greek historian of Christianity, exegete, and Christia ...
(in his ''Ecclesiastical History'', composed in the early 300s), Papias () refers to a story of Jesus and a woman "accused of many sins" as being found in the
Gospel of the Hebrews
The Gospel of the Hebrews ( grc, τὸ καθ' Ἑβραίους εὐαγγέλιον), or Gospel according to the Hebrews, is a lost Jewish–Christian gospel. The text of the gospel is lost, with only fragments of it surviving as brief quot ...
, which might refer to this passage or to one like it. In the Syriac , composed in the mid-200s, the author, in the course of instructing bishops to exercise a measure of clemency, states that a bishop who does not receive a repentant person would be doing wrong – "for you do not obey our Savior and our God, to do as He also did with her that had sinned, whom the elders set before Him, and leaving the judgment in His hands, departed. But He, the searcher of hearts, asked her and said to her, 'Have the elders condemned thee, my daughter?' She said to Him, 'No, Lord.' And He said unto her, 'Go your way; neither do I condemn thee.' In Him therefore, our Savior and King and God, be your pattern, O bishops."
The '' Constitutions of the Holy Apostles'' Book II.24, composed , echoes the , alongside a utilization of Luke 7:47. Further,
Didymus the Blind
Didymus the Blind (alternatively spelled Dedimus or Didymous) (c. 313398) was a Christian theologian in the Church of Alexandria, where he taught for about half a century. He was a student of Origen, and, after the Second Council of Constantinop ...
(c. 313–398) states that "We find in certain gospels" an episode in which a woman was accused of a sin, and was about to be stoned, but Jesus intervened "and said to those who were about to cast stones, 'He who has not sinned, let him take a stone and throw it. If anyone is conscious in himself not to have sinned, let him take a stone and smite her.' And no one dared," and so forth.
Codex Fuldensis
The Codex Fuldensis, also known as the Victor Codex (Hessian State Library, ''Codex Bonifatianus I''), designated by F, is a New Testament manuscript based on the Latin Vulgate made between 541 and 546. The codex is considered the second most impo ...
, which was produced in AD 546, and which, in the Gospels, features an unusual arrangement of the text that was found in an earlier document, contains the adulterae pericope, in the form in which it was written in the Vulgate. More significantly, Codex Fuldensis also preserves the chapter-headings of its earlier source-document (thought by some researchers to echo the Diatessaron produced by Tatian in the 170's), and the title of chapter 120 refers specifically to the woman taken in adultery.
The important codices L and
Delta
Delta commonly refers to:
* Delta (letter) (Δ or δ), a letter of the Greek alphabet
* River delta, at a river mouth
* D ( NATO phonetic alphabet: "Delta")
* Delta Air Lines, US
* Delta variant of SARS-CoV-2 that causes COVID-19
Delta may also ...
do not contain the , but between John 7:52 and 8:12, each contains a distinct blank space, as a sort of memorial left by the scribe to signify remembrance of the absent passage.
Pacian of Barcelona (bishop from 365 to 391), in the course of making a rhetorical challenge, opposes cruelty as he sarcastically endorses it: "O Novatians, why do you delay to ask an eye for an eye? ..Kill the thief. Stone the petulant. Choose not to read in the Gospel that the Lord spared even the adulteress who confessed, when none had condemned her." Pacian was a contemporary of the scribes who made Codex Sinaiticus.
The writer known as Ambrosiaster, , mentioned the occasion when Jesus "spared her who had been apprehended in adultery." The unknown author of the composition "Apologia David" (thought by some analysts to be Ambrose, but more probably not) mentioned that people could be initially taken aback by the passage in which "we see an adulteress presented to Christ and sent away without condemnation." Later in the same composition he referred to this episode as a "lection" in the Gospels, indicating that it was part of the annual cycle of readings used in the church-services.
Peter Chrysologus, writing in Ravenna , clearly cited the in his Sermon 115. Sedulius and Gelasius also clearly used the passage. Prosper of Aquitaine, and Quodvultdeus of Carthage, in the mid-400s, utilized the passage.
A text called the Second Epistle of Pope Callistus, section 6, contains a quote that may be from John 8:11 – "Let him see to it that he sin no more, that the sentence of the Gospel may abide in him: "Go, and sin no more."" However this text also appears to quote from eighth-century writings and therefore is most likely spurious.
In the
Codex Vaticanus
The Codex Vaticanus ( The Vatican, Bibl. Vat., Vat. gr. 1209), designated by siglum B or 03 (in the Gregory-Aland numbering), δ 1 ( von Soden), is a fourth-century Christian manuscript of a Greek Bible, containing the majority of the Greek Old ...
, which was produced in the early 300s, perhaps in Egypt (or in Caesarea, by copyists using exemplars from Egypt), the text is marked at the end of John chapter 7 with an umlaut in the margin, indicating that an alternative reading was known at this point. This codex also has an umlaut alongside blank space following the end of the Gospel of John, which may convey that whoever added the umlaut was aware of additional text following the end of John 21 – which is where the is found in the f-1 group of manuscripts.
Jerome
Jerome (; la, Eusebius Sophronius Hieronymus; grc-gre, Εὐσέβιος Σωφρόνιος Ἱερώνυμος; – 30 September 420), also known as Jerome of Stridon, was a Christian presbyter, priest, Confessor of the Faith, confessor, th ...
, writing around 417, reports that the was found in its usual place in "many Greek and Latin manuscripts" in Rome and the Latin West. This is confirmed by some Latin Fathers of the 300s and 400s, including
Ambrose
Ambrose of Milan ( la, Aurelius Ambrosius; ), venerated as Saint Ambrose, ; lmo, Sant Ambroeus . was a theologian and statesman who served as Bishop of Milan from 374 to 397. He expressed himself prominently as a public figure, fiercely promo ...
of Milan, and
Augustine
Augustine of Hippo ( , ; la, Aurelius Augustinus Hipponensis; 13 November 354 – 28 August 430), also known as Saint Augustine, was a theologian and philosopher of Berbers, Berber origin and the bishop of Hippo Regius in Numidia (Roman pr ...
. The latter claimed that the passage may have been improperly excluded from some manuscripts in order to avoid the impression that Christ had sanctioned adultery:
History of textual criticism
The first to systematically apply the critical marks of the Alexandrian critics was
Origen
Origen of Alexandria, ''Ōrigénēs''; Origen's Greek name ''Ōrigénēs'' () probably means "child of Horus" (from , "Horus", and , "born"). ( 185 – 253), also known as Origen Adamantius, was an Early Christianity, early Christian scholar, ...
:
Early textual critics familiar with the use and meaning of these marks in classical Greek works like
Homer
Homer (; grc, Ὅμηρος , ''Hómēros'') (born ) was a Greek poet who is credited as the author of the ''Iliad'' and the ''Odyssey'', two epic poems that are foundational works of ancient Greek literature. Homer is considered one of the ...
, interpreted the signs to mean that the section (John 7:53–8:11) was an interpolation and not an original part of the Gospel.
During the 16th century, Western European scholars – both
Catholic
The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...
and
Protestant
Protestantism is a Christian denomination, branch of Christianity that follows the theological tenets of the Reformation, Protestant Reformation, a movement that began seeking to reform the Catholic Church from within in the 16th century agai ...
– sought to recover the most correct Greek text of the
New Testament
The New Testament grc, Ἡ Καινὴ Διαθήκη, transl. ; la, Novum Testamentum. (NT) is the second division of the Christian biblical canon. It discusses the teachings and person of Jesus, as well as events in first-century Christ ...
, rather than relying on the
Vulgate
The Vulgate (; also called (Bible in common tongue), ) is a late-4th-century Latin translation of the Bible.
The Vulgate is largely the work of Jerome who, in 382, had been commissioned by Pope Damasus I to revise the Gospels u ...
Latin translation. At this time, it was noticed that a number of early manuscripts containing the Gospel of John lacked John 7:53–8:11 inclusive; and also that some manuscripts containing the verses marked them with critical signs, usually a lemniscus or
asterisk
The asterisk ( ), from Late Latin , from Ancient Greek , ''asteriskos'', "little star", is a typographical symbol. It is so called because it resembles a conventional image of a heraldic star.
Computer scientists and mathematicians often voc ...
. It was also noted that, in the lectionary of the Greek church, the Gospel-reading for Pentecost runs from John 7:37 to 8:12, but skips over the twelve verses of this pericope.
Beginning with
Karl Lachmann
Karl Konrad Friedrich Wilhelm Lachmann (; 4 March 1793 – 13 March 1851) was a German philologist and critic. He is particularly noted for his foundational contributions to the field of textual criticism.
Biography
Lachmann was born in Brun ...
(in Germany, 1840), reservations about the became more strongly argued in the modern period, and these opinions were carried into the English world by
Samuel Davidson
Samuel Davidson (September 18061 April 1898) was an Irish biblical scholar.
Life
He was born at Kellswater, County Antrim, the son of Abraham Davidson, into a Scots-Irish presbyterian. He was educated at the village school, under James Darrag ...
(1848–51),
Samuel Prideaux Tregelles
Samuel Prideaux Tregelles (30 January 1813 – 24 April 1875) was an English biblical scholar, lexicographer, Christian Hebraist, textual critic, and theologian.
Life
Tregelles was born at Wodehouse Place, Falmouth, of Quaker parents, but ...
(1862), and others; the argument against the verses being given body and final expression in
F. J. A. Hort
Fenton John Anthony Hort (1828–1892), known as F. J. A. Hort, was an Irish-born theologian and editor, with Brooke Foss Westcott of a critical edition of ''The New Testament in the Original Greek''.
Life
He was born on 23 April 1828 ...
(1886). Those opposing the authenticity of the verses as part of John are represented in the 20th century by men like
Henry Cadbury
Henry Joel Cadbury (December 1, 1883 – October 7, 1974) was an American biblical scholar, Quaker historian, writer, and non-profit administrator.
Life
A graduate of Haverford College, Cadbury was a Quaker throughout his life, as well as ...
(1917),
Ernest Cadman Colwell
Ernest Cadman Colwell (19 January 1901 – 24 September 1974) was an American biblical scholar, textual critic and palaeographer.
Life
After graduating from Emory College and Candler School of Theology, Colwell earned a Ph.D. in the Department o ...
(1935), and
Bruce M. Metzger
Bruce Manning Metzger (February 9, 1914 – February 13, 2007) was an American biblical scholar, Bible translator and textual critic who was a longtime professor at Princeton Theological Seminary and Bible editor who served on the board of the ...
(1971).
According to 19th-century text critics
Henry Alford
Henry Alford (7 October 181012 January 1871) was an English churchman, theologian, textual critic, scholar, poet, hymnodist, and writer.
Life
Alford was born in London, of a Somerset family, which had given five consecutive generations of cl ...
and
F. H. A. Scrivener
Frederick Henry Ambrose Scrivener (September 29, 1813, Bermondsey, Surrey – October 30, 1891, Hendon, Middlesex) was a New Testament textual critic and a member of the English New Testament Revision Committee which produced the Revised Version ...
the passage was added by John in a second edition of the Gospel along with 5:3.4 and the 21st chapter.
On the other hand, a number of scholars have strongly defended the Johannine authorship of these verses. This group of critics is typified by such scholars as Frederick Nolan (1865), and
John Burgon
John William Burgon (21 August 18134 August 1888) was an English Anglican divine who became the Dean of Chichester Cathedral in 1876. He was known during his lifetime for his poetry and his defence of the historicity and Mosaic authorship of Gen ...
(1886), and
Herman C. Hoskier
Herman Charles Hoskier (1864–1938), was a biblical scholar, British textual critic, and son of a merchant banker, Herman Hoskier (1832–1904).
Hoskier, as textual critic, generally but not entirely supported the Byzantine text-type against th ...
(1920). More recently it has been defended by
David Otis Fuller
David Otis Fuller (November 20, 1903 – February 21, 1988) was an American Baptist pastor. He was a graduate of Wheaton College in Wheaton, Illinois and Princeton Theological Seminary. He pastored Chelsea Baptist Church in Atlantic City, New J ...
(1975), and is included in the Greek New Testaments compiled by Wilbur Pickering (1980/2014), Hodges & Farstad (1982/1985), and Robinson & Pierpont (2005). Rather than endorsing Augustine's theory that some men had removed the passage due to a concern that it would be used by their wives as a pretext to commit adultery, Burgon proposed (but did not develop in detail) a theory that the passage had been lost due to a misunderstanding of a feature in the lection-system of the early church.
Almost all modern critical translations that include the pericope adulterae do so at John 7:53–8:11. Exceptions include the
New English Bible
The New English Bible (NEB) is an English translation of the Bible. The New Testament was published in 1961 and the Old Testament (with the Apocrypha) was published on 16 March 1970. In 1989, it was significantly revised and republished as the R ...
and
Revised English Bible
The Revised English Bible (REB) is a 1989 English-language translation of the Bible that updates the New English Bible (NEB) of 1970. As with its predecessor, it is published by the publishing houses of both the universities of Oxford and Cambri ...
, which relocate the pericope after the end of the Gospel. Most others enclose the pericope in brackets, or add a footnote mentioning the absence of the passage in the oldest witnesses (e.g.,
NRSV
The New Revised Standard Version (NRSV) is an English translation of the Bible published in 1989 by the National Council of Churches.NJB,
NIV Niv may refer to:
* Niv, a personal name; for people with the name, see
* Niv Art Movies, a film production company of India
* Niv Art Centre, in New Delhi, India
NIV may refer to:
* The New International Version, a translation of the Bible into ...
,
GNT GNT may refer to:
* GNT, a Brazilian television channel
* '' George Negus Tonight'', an Australian television program
* Geschwindigkeitsüberwachung Neigetechnik, a German train safety system
* Good News Translation, a Bible translation
* Grand Na ...
Bishop J. B. Lightfoot wrote that absence of the passage from the earliest manuscripts, combined with the occurrence of stylistic characteristics atypical of John, together implied that the passage was an interpolation. Nevertheless, he considered the story to be authentic history. As a result, based on
Eusebius
Eusebius of Caesarea (; grc-gre, Εὐσέβιος ; 260/265 – 30 May 339), also known as Eusebius Pamphilus (from the grc-gre, Εὐσέβιος τοῦ Παμφίλου), was a Greek historian of Christianity, exegete, and Christian ...
' mention that the writings of Papias contained a story "about a woman falsely accused before the Lord of many sins" (H.E. 3.39), he argued that this section originally was part of Papias' ''Interpretations of the Sayings of the Lord'', and included it in his collection of Papias' fragments.
Bart D. Ehrman
Bart Denton Ehrman (born 1955) is an American New Testament scholar focusing on textual criticism of the New Testament, the historical Jesus, and the origins and development of early Christianity. He has written and edited 30 books, including t ...
concurs in ''Misquoting Jesus'', adding that the passage contains many words and phrases otherwise alien to John's writing. The evangelical Bible scholar
Daniel B. Wallace
Daniel Baird Wallace (born June 5, 1952) is an American professor of New Testament Studies at Dallas Theological Seminary. He is also the founder and executive director of the Center for the Study of New Testament Manuscripts, the purpose of whi ...
agrees with Ehrman.
There are several excerpts from Papias that confirm this:
Fragment 1:
And he relates another story of a woman, who was accused of many sins before the Lord, which is contained in the Gospel according to the Hebrews. These things we have thought it necessary to observe in addition to what has been already stated.
Fragment 2:
And there was at that time in Menbij ierapolisa distinguished master who had many treatises, and he wrote five treatises on the Gospel. And he mentions in his treatise on the Gospel of John, that in the book of John the Evangelist, he speaks of a woman who was adulterous, so when they presented her to Christ our Lord, to whom be glory, He told the Jews who brought her to Him, “Whoever of you knows that he is innocent of what she has done, let him testify against her with what he has.” So when He told them that, none of them responded with anything and they left.
Fragment 3:
The story of that adulterous woman, which other Christians have written in their gospel, was written about by a certain Papias, a student of John, who was declared a heretic and condemned. Eusebius wrote about this. There are laws and that matter which Pilate, the king of the Jews, wrote of. And it is said that he wrote in Hebrew with Latin and Greek above it.
However, Michael W. Holmes says that it is not certain "that Papias knew the story in precisely this form, inasmuch as it now appears that at least two independent stories about Jesus and a sinful woman circulated among Christians in the first two centuries of the church, so that the traditional form found in many New Testament manuscripts may well represent a conflation of two independent shorter, earlier versions of the incident." Kyle R. Hughes has argued that one of these earlier versions is in fact very similar in style, form, and content to the Lukan special material (the so-called "L" source), suggesting that the core of this tradition is in fact rooted in very early Christian (though not Johannine) memory.
Arguments for Johannine authorship
There is clear reference to the pericope adulterae in the primitive Christian church in the Syriac ''
Didascalia Apostolorum
''Didascalia Apostolorum'', or just ''Didascalia'', is a Christian legal treatise which belongs to the genre of the Church Orders. It presents itself as being written by the Twelve Apostles at the time of the Council of Jerusalem; however, scho ...
''. (II,24,6; ed. Funk I, 93.)
Zane C. Hodges
Zane Clark Hodges (June 15, 1932 – November 23, 2008) was an American pastor, seminary professor, and Bible scholar.
Some of the views he is known for are these:
*"Free Grace theology," a view that holds that eternal life is received as a fre ...
and Arthur L. Farstad argue for Johannine authorship of the pericope. They suggest there are points of similarity between the pericope's style and the style of the rest of the gospel. They claim that the details of the encounter fit very well into the context of the surrounding verses. They argue that the pericope's appearance in the majority of manuscripts, if not in the oldest ones, is evidence of its authenticity.
Manuscript evidence
Both the (NA28) and the
United Bible Societies
The United Bible Societies (UBS) is a global fellowship of around 150 Bible Societies operating in more than 240 countries and territories. It has working hubs in England, Singapore, Nairobi and Miami. The headquarters are located in Swindon, Eng ...
(UBS4) provide critical text for the pericope, but mark this off with double square brackets, indicating that the is regarded as a later addition to the text.
Various manuscripts treat, or include, the passage in a variety of ways. These can be categorised into those that exclude it entirely, those that exclude only a shortened version of the passage (including 7:53-8:2 but excluding 8:3-11), those that include only a shortened version of the passage (8:3–11), those that include the passage in full, those that question the passage, those that question only the shorter passage, those that relocate it to a different place within the Gospel of John, and those that mark it as having been added by a later hand.
#Exclude the passage:
Papyri
Papyrus ( ) is a material similar to thick paper that was used in ancient times as a writing surface. It was made from the pith of the papyrus plant, ''Cyperus papyrus'', a wetland sedge. ''Papyrus'' (plural: ''papyri'') can also refer to a d ...
66 (''c''. 200 or 4th century) and 75 (early 3rd century or 4th century); Codices
Sinaiticus
The Codex Sinaiticus (Shelfmark: London, British Library, Add MS 43725), designated by siglum [Aleph] or 01 (in the Gregory-Aland numbering of New Testament manuscripts), δ 2 (in the von Soden numbering of New Testament manuscripts) ...
Alexandrinus
The Codex Alexandrinus (London, British Library, Royal MS 1. D. V-VIII), designated by the siglum A or 02 (in the Gregory-Aland numbering of New Testament manuscripts), δ 4 (in the von Soden numbering of New Testament manuscripts), is a manu ...
Uncials
Uncial is a majuscule Glaister, Geoffrey Ashall. (1996) ''Encyclopedia of the Book''. 2nd edn. New Castle, DE, and London: Oak Knoll Press & The British Library, p. 494. script (written entirely in capital letters) commonly used from the 4th t ...
108 108 may refer to:
* 108 (number)
* AD 108, a year
* 108 BC, a year
* 108 (artist) (born 1978), Italian street artist
* 108 (band), an American hardcore band
* 108 (emergency telephone number), an emergency telephone number in several states in Ind ...
134 134 may refer to:
* 134 (number)
* AD 134
* 134 BC
* 134 (MBTA bus)
*134 (New Jersey bus) 134 may refer to:
*134 (number)
* AD 134
*134 BC
*134 (MBTA bus)
The Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority bus division operates bus routes in the B ...
,
139 139 may refer to:
* 139 (number), an integer
* AD 139, a year of the Julian calendar
* 139 BC, a year of the pre-Julian Roman calendar
* 139 (New Jersey bus) 139 may refer to:
* 139 (number), an integer
* AD 139, a year of the Julian calendar
* 13 ...
,
151
Year 151 (CLI) was a common year starting on Thursday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Condianus and Valerius (or, less frequently, year 904 ''Ab urbe cond ...
209
Year 209 ( CCIX) was a common year starting on Sunday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Commodus and Lollianus (or, less frequently, year 962 '' Ab urbe cond ...
303
__NOTOC__
Year 303 ( CCCIII) was a common year starting on Friday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. It was known in the Roman Empire as the Year of the Consulship of Diocletian and Maximian (or, less frequently, y ...
,
306
__NOTOC__
Year 306 ( CCCVI) was a common year starting on Tuesday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Constantius and Valerius (or, less frequently, year 105 ...
,
315
__NOTOC__
Year 315 ( CCCXV) was a common year starting on Saturday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Constantinus and Licinianus (or, less frequently, year ...
333
__NOTOC__
Year 333 ( CCCXXXIII) was a common year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Dalmatius and Zenophilus (or, less frequently, year 108 ...
,
370
__NOTOC__
Year 370 ( CCCLXX) was a common year starting on Friday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Augustus and Valens (or, less frequently, year 1123 '' ...
445
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Year 445 ( CDXLV) was a common year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Valentinianus and Nomus (or, less frequently, year 1198 ' ...
499
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Year 499 (Roman numerals, CDXCIX) was a common year starting on Friday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Iohannes without colleague (or, less frequ ...
,
501
__NOTOC__
Year 501 ( DI) was a common year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Avienus and Pompeius (or, less frequently, year 1254 '' Ab u ...
537
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Year 537 ( DXXXVII) was a common year starting on Thursday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Second year after the Consulship of Belisarius (or, less frequently, year 1290 ...
684
__NOTOC__
Year 684 ( DCLXXXIV) was a leap year starting on Friday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. The denomination 684 for this year has been used since the early medieval period, when the Anno Domini calendar era ...
,
703
__NOTOC__
Year 703 (Roman numerals, DCCIII) was a common year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar, the 703rd year of the Common Era (CE) and Anno Domini (AD) designations, the 703rd year of the 1st mi ...
,
713
__NOTOC__
Year 713 ( DCCXIII) was a common year starting on Sunday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. The denomination 713 for this year has been used since the early medieval period, when the Anno Domini calendar era ...
729
Year 729 ( DCCXXIX) was a common year starting on Saturday of the Julian calendar. The denomination 729 for this year has been used since the early medieval period, when the Anno Domini calendar era became the prevalent method in Europe for nami ...
,
730
__NOTOC__
Year 730 ( DCCXXX) was a common year starting on Sunday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. The denomination 730 for this year has been used since the early medieval period, when the Anno Domini calendar era ...
,
731
__NOTOC__
Year 731 ( DCCXXXI) was a common year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. The denomination 731 for this year has been used since the early medieval period, when the Anno Domini calendar era ...
733
__NOTOC__
Year 733 ( DCCXXXIII) was a common year starting on Thursday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. The denomination 733 for this year has been used since the early medieval period, when the Anno Domini calend ...
736
__NOTOC__
Year 736 ( DCCXXXVI) was a leap year starting on Sunday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. The denomination 736 for this year has been used since the early medieval period, when the Anno Domini calendar era ...
,
740
__NOTOC__
Year 740 ( DCCXL) was a leap year starting on Friday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar, the 740th year of the Common Era (CE) and ''Anno Domini'' (AD) designations, the 740th year of the 1st millennium, th ...
,
741
__NOTOC__
Year 741 ( DCCXLI) was a common year starting on Sunday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. The denomination 741 for this year has been used since the early medieval period, when the Anno Domini calendar era ...
,
742
__NOTOC__
Year 742 ( DCCXLII) was a common year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. The denomination 742 for this year has been used since the early medieval period, when the Anno Domini calendar era ...
,
743
__NOTOC__
Year 743 ( DCCXLIII) was a common year starting on Tuesday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. The denomination 743 for this year has been used since the early medieval period, when the Anno Domini calendar ...
,
744
__NOTOC__
Year 744 ( DCCXLIV) was a leap year starting on Wednesday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. The denomination 744 for this year has been used since the early medieval period, when the Anno Domini calendar e ...
768
__NOTOC__
Year 768 ( DCCLXVIII) was a leap year starting on Friday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. The denomination 768 for this year has been used since the early medieval period, when the Anno Domini calendar er ...
,
770
__NOTOC__
Year 770 ( DCCLXX) was a common year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. The denomination 770 for this year has been used since the early medieval period, when the Anno Domini calendar era ...
,
772
__NOTOC__
Year 772 (Roman numerals, DCCLXXII) was a leap year starting on Wednesday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. The denomination 772 for this year has been used since the early medieval period, when the Anno Do ...
,
773
__NOTOC__
Year 773 ( DCCLXXIII) was a common year starting on Friday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. The denomination 773 for this year has been used since the early medieval period, when the Anno Domini calendar e ...
777
777 may refer to:
* 777 (number), a number
* AD 777, a year of the Julian calendar
* 777 BC, a year in the 8th century BC
* Boeing 777, a commercial jet airliner
:* Boeing 777X, the newer generation of the Boeing 777.
Art and entertainment Alb ...
794
__NOTOC__
Year 794 ( DCCXCIV) was a common year starting on Wednesday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. The denomination 794 for this year has been used since the early medieval period, when the Anno Domini calendar ...
,
799
__NOTOC__
Year 799 ( DCCXCIX) was a common year starting on Tuesday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. The denomination 799 for this year has been used since the early medieval period, when the Anno Domini calendar ...
,
800
__NOTOC__
Year 800 ( DCCC) was a leap year starting on Wednesday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. It was around this time that the Anno Domini calendar era became the prevalent method in Europe for naming years, so ...
,
817
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Year 817 ( DCCCXVII) was a common year starting on Thursday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar.
Events
By place Europe
* Summer – Emperor Louis I issues an ''Ordinatio Imperii'', an imperial de ...
,
818
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Events
By place Byzantine Empire
* Vikings known as Rus' (Norsemen) plunder the north coast of Anatolia ...
820
__NOTOC__
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Events
By place Abbasid Caliphate
*Abbasid caliph Al-Ma'mun appointed Isa ibn Yazid al-Juludi as Abbasid gove ...
827
__FORCETOC__
Year 827 ( DCCCXXVII) was a common year starting on Tuesday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar.
Events
By place Byzantine Empire
* June 14 – Euphemius, exiled Byzantine admiral, asks for ...
,
828
__NOTOC__
Year 828 ( DCCCXXVIII) was a leap year starting on Wednesday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar.
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By place
Byzantine Empire
* Siege of Syracuse: The Muslims under Asad ibn al-Furat defeat ...
,
831
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Year 831 ( DCCCXXXI) was a common year starting on Sunday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar.
Events
By place Byzantine Empire
* Byzantine–Arab War: Emperor Theophilos invades the Abbasid dominion ...
,
833
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Year 833 ( DCCCXXXIII) was a common year starting on Wednesday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar.
Events
By place Byzantine Empire
* Byzantine-Arab War: Emperor Theophilos signs an armistice for p ...
,
834
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Year 834 ( DCCCXXXIV) was a common year starting on Thursday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar.
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By place Europe
* March 1 – Emperor Louis the Pious is restored as sole ruler of the Fr ...
,
835
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Year 835 ( DCCCXXXV) was a common year starting on Friday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian Calendar.
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By place Europe
* Ragnar Lodbrok, a Norse Viking ruler, rises to power. He becomes the scourge of ...
,
836
__NOTOC__
Year 836 ( DCCCXXXVI) was a leap year starting on Saturday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar.
Events
By place Abbasid Caliphate
* Driven by tensions between his favoured Turkish guard and the popula ...
843
__NOTOC__
Year 843 ( DCCCXLIII) was a common year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar.
Events
By place
Europe
* August – Treaty of Verdun: The Frankish Empire is divided into three k ...
,
849
__NOTOC__
Year 849 (Roman numerals, DCCCXLIX) was a common year starting on Tuesday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar.
Events
By place
Europe
* Summer – Battle of Ostia: A Saracen Arab fleet from Sardi ...
,
850
''For codepage, see CP850.''
__NOTOC__
Year 850 ( DCCCL) was a common year starting on Wednesday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar.
Events
By place
Europe
* February 1 – King Ramiro I dies in his palac ...
,
854
__NOTOC__
Year 854 ( DCCCLIV) was a common year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar.
Events
By place Europe
* Emperor Lothair I meets his (half) brothers (Louis the German and Charles the Bal ...
857
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Year 857 ( DCCCLVII) was a common year starting on Friday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar.
Events
By place
Byzantine Empire
* Emperor Michael III, under the influence of his uncle Bardas, banis ...
,
862
__NOTOC__
Year 862 ( DCCCLXII) was a common year starting on Thursday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar.
Events
By place
Europe
* The Varangians (called Rus'), under the leadership of Rurik, a Viking chie ...
,
863
__NOTOC__
Year 863 ( DCCCLXIII) was a common year starting on Friday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar.
Events
By place Byzantine Empire
* September 3 – Battle of Lalakaon: A Byzantine army confronts ...
,
865
__NOTOC__
Year 865 ( DCCCLXV) was a common year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar.
Events
By place Europe
* King Louis the German divides the East Frankish Kingdom among his three sons. C ...
896
__NOTOC__
Year 896 ( DCCCXCVI) was a leap year starting on Thursday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar.
Events
By place Europe
* February – King Arnulf of Carinthia invades Italy at the head of an East ...
, 989, 1077,
1080
Year 1080 (Roman numerals, MLXXX) was a leap year starting on Wednesday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar.
Events
By place
Byzantine Empire
* Autumn – Nikephoros Melissenos, a Byzantine general and ar ...
, 1141 1178, 1230, 1241, 1242, 1253, 1256, 1261, 1262, 1326, 1333, 1357, 1593, 2106, 2193, 2244, 2768, 2862, 2900, 2901, 2907, 2957, 2965 and 2985; the majority of
lectionaries
A lectionary ( la, lectionarium) is a book or listing that contains a collection of scripture readings appointed for Christian or Judaic worship on a given day or occasion. There are sub-types such as a "gospel lectionary" or evangeliary, and a ...
; some
Old Latin
Old Latin, also known as Early Latin or Archaic Latin (Classical la, prīsca Latīnitās, lit=ancient Latinity), was the Latin language in the period before 75 BC, i.e. before the age of Classical Latin. It descends from a common Proto-Italic ...
, the majority of the
Syriac Syriac may refer to:
*Syriac language, an ancient dialect of Middle Aramaic
*Sureth, one of the modern dialects of Syriac spoken in the Nineveh Plains region
* Syriac alphabet
** Syriac (Unicode block)
** Syriac Supplement
* Neo-Aramaic languages a ...
, the
Sahidic
Coptic (Bohairic Coptic: , ) is a language family of closely related dialects, representing the most recent developments of the Egyptian language, and historically spoken by the Copts, starting from the third-century AD in Roman Egypt. Coptic w ...
dialect of the
Coptic
Coptic may refer to:
Afro-Asia
* Copts, an ethnoreligious group mainly in the area of modern Egypt but also in Sudan and Libya
* Coptic language, a Northern Afro-Asiatic language spoken in Egypt until at least the 17th century
* Coptic alphabet ...
, the
Garima Gospels
The Garima Gospels are two ancient Ethiopic Gospel Books. Garima 2, the earlier of the two, is believed to be the earliest surviving complete illuminated Christian manuscript. Monastic tradition holds that they were composed close to the year 50 ...
and other Ethiopic witnesses, the
Gothic
Gothic or Gothics may refer to:
People and languages
*Goths or Gothic people, the ethnonym of a group of East Germanic tribes
**Gothic language, an extinct East Germanic language spoken by the Goths
**Crimean Gothic, the Gothic language spoken b ...
, some
Armenian
Armenian may refer to:
* Something of, from, or related to Armenia, a country in the South Caucasus region of Eurasia
* Armenians, the national people of Armenia, or people of Armenian descent
** Armenian Diaspora, Armenian communities across the ...
Diatessaron
The ''Diatessaron'' ( syr, ܐܘܢܓܠܝܘܢ ܕܡܚܠܛܐ, Ewangeliyôn Damhalltê; c. 160–175 AD) is the most prominent early gospel harmony, and was created by Tatian, an Assyrian early Christian apologist and ascetic. Tatian sought to comb ...
(2nd century); apparently
Clement of Alexandria
Titus Flavius Clemens, also known as Clement of Alexandria ( grc , Κλήμης ὁ Ἀλεξανδρεύς; – ), was a Christian theologian and philosopher who taught at the Catechetical School of Alexandria. Among his pupils were Origen and ...
(died 215), other
Church Fathers
The Church Fathers, Early Church Fathers, Christian Fathers, or Fathers of the Church were ancient and influential Christian theologians and writers who established the intellectual and doctrinal foundations of Christianity. The historical per ...
namely
Tertullian
Tertullian (; la, Quintus Septimius Florens Tertullianus; 155 AD – 220 AD) was a prolific early Christian author from Carthage in the Roman province of Africa. He was the first Christian author to produce an extensive corpus of L ...
(died 220),
Origen
Origen of Alexandria, ''Ōrigénēs''; Origen's Greek name ''Ōrigénēs'' () probably means "child of Horus" (from , "Horus", and , "born"). ( 185 – 253), also known as Origen Adamantius, was an Early Christianity, early Christian scholar, ...
(died 254),
Cyprian
Cyprian (; la, Thaschus Caecilius Cyprianus; 210 – 14 September 258 AD''The Liturgy of the Hours according to the Roman Rite: Vol. IV.'' New York: Catholic Book Publishing Company, 1975. p. 1406.) was a bishop of Carthage and an early Chri ...
(died 258),
John Chrysostom
John Chrysostom (; gr, Ἰωάννης ὁ Χρυσόστομος; 14 September 407) was an important Early Church Father who served as archbishop of Constantinople. He is known for his homilies, preaching and public speaking, his denunciat ...
(died 407),
Nonnus
Nonnus of Panopolis ( grc-gre, Νόννος ὁ Πανοπολίτης, ''Nónnos ho Panopolítēs'', 5th century CE) was the most notable Greek epic poet of the Imperial Roman era. He was a native of Panopolis (Akhmim) in the Egyptian Theb ...
(died 431),
Cyril of Alexandria
Cyril of Alexandria ( grc, Κύριλλος Ἀλεξανδρείας; cop, Ⲡⲁⲡⲁ Ⲕⲩⲣⲓⲗⲗⲟⲩ ⲁ̅ also ⲡⲓ̀ⲁⲅⲓⲟⲥ Ⲕⲓⲣⲓⲗⲗⲟⲥ; 376 – 444) was the Patriarch of Alexandria from 412 to 444 ...
(died 444) and
Cosmas
Cosmas or Kosmas is a Greek language, Greek name ( grc-gre, Κοσμᾶς), from Ancient Greek Κοσμᾶς (Kosmâs), associated with the noun κόσμος (kósmos), meaning "Cosmos, universe", and the verb κοσμέω (to order, govern, ado ...
759
__NOTOC__
Year 759 ( DCCLIX) was a common year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. The denomination 759 for this year has been used since the early medieval period, when the Anno Domini calendar era ...
Codex Bezae
The Codex Bezae Cantabrigiensis, designated by siglum D or 05 (in the Gregory-Aland numbering of New Testament manuscripts), δ 5 (in the von Soden of New Testament manuscript), is a codex of the New Testament dating from the 5th century writ ...
Minuscule 28
Minuscule 28 (in the Gregory-Aland numbering of New Testament manuscripts), ε 168 (in the Soden of New Testament manuscripts), formerly known as ''Colbertinus 4705'', is a Greek minuscule manuscript of the New Testament, written on vellum. Usi ...
700
The denomination 700 for this year has been used since the early medieval period, when the Anno Domini calendar era became the prevalent method in Europe for naming years.
Events
By place Byzantine Empire
* Avar and Slavic tribes conq ...
Old Latin
Old Latin, also known as Early Latin or Archaic Latin (Classical la, prīsca Latīnitās, lit=ancient Latinity), was the Latin language in the period before 75 BC, i.e. before the age of Classical Latin. It descends from a common Proto-Italic ...
, the
Vulgate
The Vulgate (; also called (Bible in common tongue), ) is a late-4th-century Latin translation of the Bible.
The Vulgate is largely the work of Jerome who, in 382, had been commissioned by Pope Damasus I to revise the Gospels u ...
(
Codex Fuldensis
The Codex Fuldensis, also known as the Victor Codex (Hessian State Library, ''Codex Bonifatianus I''), designated by F, is a New Testament manuscript based on the Latin Vulgate made between 541 and 546. The codex is considered the second most impo ...
), some Syriac, the Bohairic dialect of the Coptic, some Armenian, Didascalia (3rd century),
Didymus the Blind
Didymus the Blind (alternatively spelled Dedimus or Didymous) (c. 313398) was a Christian theologian in the Church of Alexandria, where he taught for about half a century. He was a student of Origen, and, after the Second Council of Constantinop ...
Ambrose
Ambrose of Milan ( la, Aurelius Ambrosius; ), venerated as Saint Ambrose, ; lmo, Sant Ambroeus . was a theologian and statesman who served as Bishop of Milan from 374 to 397. He expressed himself prominently as a public figure, fiercely promo ...
(died 397),
Jerome
Jerome (; la, Eusebius Sophronius Hieronymus; grc-gre, Εὐσέβιος Σωφρόνιος Ἱερώνυμος; – 30 September 420), also known as Jerome of Stridon, was a Christian presbyter, priest, Confessor of the Faith, confessor, th ...
(died 420),
Augustine
Augustine of Hippo ( , ; la, Aurelius Augustinus Hipponensis; 13 November 354 – 28 August 430), also known as Saint Augustine, was a theologian and philosopher of Berbers, Berber origin and the bishop of Hippo Regius in Numidia (Roman pr ...
(died 430).
#Question pericope (marked with asterisks (※),
obeli
An obelus (plural: obeluses or obeli) is a term in typography that refers to a historical mark which has resolved to three modern meanings:
* Division sign
* Dagger (typography), Dagger
* Commercial minus sign (limited geographical area of u ...
(÷), dash (–) or (<)):
Codex Vaticanus 354
Codex Vaticanus, designated by S or 028 (in the Gregory-Aland numbering), ε 1027 ( von Soden), formerly called ''Codex Guelpherbytanus'', is a Greek manuscript of the four Gospels which can be dated to a specific year instead of an estimated ran ...
(S) and the Minuscules 18, 24, 35, 83, 95 (questionable scholion), 109, 125, 141,
148 148 may refer to:
*148 (number), a natural number
*AD 148, a year in the 2nd century AD
*148 BC, a year in the 2nd century BC
*148 (album), an album by C418
*148 (Meiktila) Battery Royal Artillery
*148 (New Jersey bus) 148 may refer to:
*148 (numb ...
161
Year 161 ( CLXI) was a common year starting on Wednesday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Caesar and Aurelius (or, less frequently, year 914 '' Ab urbe condi ...
285
The year 285 ( CCLXXXV) was a common year starting on Thursday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. In the Roman Empire, it was known as the "Year of the Consulship of Carinus and Aurelius" (or, less frequently, "year ...
,
338
__NOTOC__
Year 338 ( CCCXXXVIII) was a common year starting on Sunday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Ursus and Polemius (or, less frequently, year 1091 ' ...
367
__NOTOC__
Year 367 ( CCCLXVII) was a common year starting on Monday of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Lupicinus and Iovanus (or, less frequently, year 1120 ''Ab urbe condita''). The denomination ...
,
376
__NOTOC__
Year 376 (Roman numerals, CCCLXXVI) was a leap year starting on Friday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Valens and Augustus (or, less frequently, ...
478
Year 478 (Roman numerals, CDLXXVIII) was a common year starting on Sunday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Illus without colleague (or, less frequently, yea ...
510
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Year 510 ( DX) was a common year starting on Friday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. In the Roman Empire, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Severinus without colleague (or, less frequently ...
655
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Year 655 ( DCLV) was a common year starting on Thursday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. The denomination 655 for this year has been used since the early medieval period, when the Anno Domini calendar era ...
,
656
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Year 656 ( DCLVI) was a leap year starting on Friday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. The denomination 656 for this year has been used since the early medieval period, when the Anno Domini calendar era bec ...
,
661
Year 661 ( DCLXI) was a common year starting on Friday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. The denomination 661 for this year has been used since the early medieval period, when the Anno Domini calendar era became the ...
685
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Year 685 ( DCLXXXV) was a common year starting on Sunday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. The denomination 685 for this year has been used since the early medieval period, when the Anno Domini calendar era ...
, 699,
757
757 may refer to:
* Boeing 757: a narrow-body airliner
* AD 757: a year
* 757 BC: a year
* 757 (number): a number
* Area code 757
Image:Area code 757.png, The area colored red indicates the southeast corner of Virginia served by area code 757
po ...
763
Year 763 ( DCCLXIII) was a common year starting on Saturday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. The denomination 763 for this year has been used since the early medieval period, when the Anno Domini calendar era became ...
781
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Year 781 ( DCCLXXXI) was a common year starting on Monday of the Julian calendar. The denomination 781 for this year has been used since the early medieval period, when the Anno Domini calendar era became the prevalent method in Euro ...
801
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Year 801 ( DCCCI) was a common year starting on Friday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar.
Events
By place
Europe
* Emperor Charlemagne formally cedes Nordalbian territory (modern-day Schleswig-H ...
825
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Year 825 ( DCCCXXV) was a common year starting on Sunday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar.
Events
By place
India
* A group of Persio-Assyrian adherents of the Church of the East, under the leade ...
,
829
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Year 829 ( DCCCXXIX) was a common year starting on Friday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar.
Events
By place
Byzantine Empire
* October 2 – Emperor Michael II dies after an 8-year reign in C ...
,
844
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Year 844 ( DCCCXLIV) was a leap year starting on Tuesday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar.
Events
By place
Byzantine Empire
* Spring – Battle of Mauropotamos: A Byzantine expedition under ...
897
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Year 897 ( DCCCXCVII) was a common year starting on Saturday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar.
Events
By place Europe
* Spring – King Lambert II travels to Rome with his mother, Queen Agelt ...
,
922
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Year 922 ( CMXXII) was a common year starting on Tuesday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar.
Events
By place
Byzantine Empire
* Summer – Battle of Constantinople: Emperor Romanos I sends Byza ...
, 1073, 1092 (later hand), 1187, 1189, 1280, 1443, 1445, 2099, and 2253 include entire pericope from 7:53; the
menologion
Menologium (), also written menology, and menologe, is a service-book used in the Eastern Orthodox Church and those Eastern Catholic Churches which follow the Byzantine Rite.
From its derivation from Greek , ''menológion'', from μήν ''m ...
of Lectionary 185 includes 8:1ff; Codex Basilensis (E) includes 8:2ff; Codex Tischendorfianus III (Λ) and Petropolitanus (П) also the menologia of Lectionaries ℓ ''86'', ℓ ''211'', ℓ ''1579'' and ℓ ''1761'' include 8:3ff. Minuscule 807 is a manuscript with a Catena, but only in John 7:53–8:11 without catena. It is a characteristic of late Byzantine manuscripts conforming to the sub-type '' Family K'', that this pericope is marked with
obeli
An obelus (plural: obeluses or obeli) is a term in typography that refers to a historical mark which has resolved to three modern meanings:
* Division sign
* Dagger (typography), Dagger
* Commercial minus sign (limited geographical area of u ...
; although Maurice Robinson argues that these marks are intended to remind lectors that these verses are to be omitted from the Gospel lection for
Pentecost
Pentecost (also called Whit Sunday, Whitsunday or Whitsun) is a Christianity, Christian holiday which takes place on the 50th day (the seventh Sunday) after Easter Sunday. It commemorates the descent of the Holy Spirit upon the Apostles in the Ne ...
, not to question the authenticity of the passage.
# Shorter passage questioned (8:3–11, marked with asterisks (※),
obeli
An obelus (plural: obeluses or obeli) is a term in typography that refers to a historical mark which has resolved to three modern meanings:
* Division sign
* Dagger (typography), Dagger
* Commercial minus sign (limited geographical area of u ...
443
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Year 443 ( CDXLIII) was a common year starting on Friday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Maximus and Paterius (or, less frequently, year 1196 ' ...
873
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Year 873 ( DCCCLXXIII) was a common year starting on Thursday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar.
Events
By place Europe
* Carloman, son of King Charles the Bald, is hauled before a secular court an ...
Family 1
Family 1 is a group of Greek Gospel manuscripts, varying in date from the 12th to the 15th century. The group takes its name from the minuscule codex 1, now in the Basel University Library, Switzerland. "Family 1" is also known as "the Lake Grou ...
135 135 may refer to:
* 135 (number)
* AD 135
* 135 BC
* 135 film, better known as 35 mm film, is a format of photographic film used for still photography
*135 (New Jersey bus) 135 may refer to:
* 135 (number)
* AD 135
* 135 BC
* 135 film, better know ...
347
Year 347 (Roman numerals, CCCXLVII) was a common year starting on Thursday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Rufinus and Eusebius (or, less frequently, year 1 ...
, and nearly all Armenian translations place the pericope after John 21:25;
Family 13
Family 13, also known as the Ferrar Group (''ƒ'', von Soden calls the group I), is a group of Greek Gospel manuscripts, dating from the 11th to the 15th centuries, which share a distinctive pattern of variant readings — especially placing the pa ...
place it after Luke 21:38; a corrector to Minuscule 1333 added 8:3–11 after Luke 24:53; and Minuscule 225 includes the pericope after John 7:36.
Minuscule 129
Minuscule 129 (in the Gregory-Aland numbering), A200 ( Soden), is a Greek minuscule manuscript of the New Testament, on parchment leaves. Palaeographically it has been assigned to the 12th century. The manuscript has complex contents.K. Aland, M ...
,
135 135 may refer to:
* 135 (number)
* AD 135
* 135 BC
* 135 film, better known as 35 mm film, is a format of photographic film used for still photography
*135 (New Jersey bus) 135 may refer to:
* 135 (number)
* AD 135
* 135 BC
* 135 film, better know ...
788
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Year 788 ( DCCLXXXVIII) was a leap year starting on Tuesday of the Julian calendar. The denomination 788 for this year has been used since the early medieval period, when the Anno Domini calendar era became the prevalent method in ...
and Minuscule 826 placed pericope after Luke 21:38. 115, 552, 1349, and 2620 placed pericope after John 8:12.
#Added by a later hand:
Codex Ebnerianus
Codex Ebnerianus, ''Minuscule 105'' (in the Gregory-Aland numbering), δ 257 ( Soden), is a Greek language illuminated manuscript of the New Testament, though missing the Book of Revelation.
Formerly it was labeled by 105e, 48a, and 24p.
De ...
, 19, 284, 431, 391, 461, 470, 501 (8:3-11), 578, 794, 1141, 1357, 1593, 2174, 2244, 2860.
The was never read as a part of the lesson for the
Pentecost
Pentecost (also called Whit Sunday, Whitsunday or Whitsun) is a Christianity, Christian holiday which takes place on the 50th day (the seventh Sunday) after Easter Sunday. It commemorates the descent of the Holy Spirit upon the Apostles in the Ne ...
cycle, but John 8:3–8:11 was reserved for the festivals of such saints as Theodora, 18 September, or Pelagia, 8 October.
Pieter Bruegel the Elder
Pieter Bruegel (also Brueghel or Breughel) the Elder (, ; ; – 9 September 1569) was the most significant artist of Dutch and Flemish Renaissance painting, a painter and printmaker, known for his landscapes and peasant scenes (so-called genr ...
Rembrandt
Rembrandt Harmenszoon van Rijn (, ; 15 July 1606 – 4 October 1669), usually simply known as Rembrandt, was a Dutch Golden Age painter, printmaker and draughtsman. An innovative and prolific master in three media, he is generally consid ...
Mattia Preti
Mattia Preti (24 February 1613 – 3 January 1699) was an Italian Baroque artist who worked in Italy and Malta. He was appointed a Member of the Order of Saint John.
Life
Born in the small town of Taverna in Calabria, Preti was called ''Il Ca ...
Peter Paul Rubens
Sir Peter Paul Rubens (; ; 28 June 1577 – 30 May 1640) was a Flemish artist and diplomat from the Duchy of Brabant in the Southern Netherlands (modern-day Belgium). He is considered the most influential artist of the Flemish Baroque traditio ...
Max Beckmann
Max Carl Friedrich Beckmann (February 12, 1884 – December 27, 1950) was a German painter, draftsman, printmaker, sculptor, and writer. Although he is classified as an Expressionist artist, he rejected both the term and the movement. In the 1920 ...
(1917)
* ''Christ with the Adulteress'' by
Han van Meegeren
Henricus Antonius "Han" van Meegeren (; 10 October 1889 – 30 December 1947) was a Dutch painter and portraitist, considered one of the most ingenious art forgers of the 20th century. Van Meegeren became a national hero after World War II when ...
Vermeer
Johannes Vermeer ( , , see below; also known as Jan Vermeer; October 1632 – 15 December 1675) was a Dutch Baroque Period painter who specialized in domestic interior scenes of middle-class life. During his lifetime, he was a moderately succe ...
Variations of the story are told in the 1986 science fiction novel ''
Speaker for the Dead
''Speaker for the Dead'' is a 1986 science fiction novel by American writer Orson Scott Card, an indirect sequel to the 1985 novel '' Ender's Game''. The book takes place around the year 5270, some 3,000 years after the events in ''Ender's Game ...
'' by
Orson Scott Card
Orson Scott Card (born August 24, 1951) is an American writer known best for his science fiction works. He is the first and (as of 2022) only person to win both a Hugo Award and a Nebula Award in consecutive years, winning both awards for both ...
, as part of ''Letters to an Incipient Heretic'' by the character San Angelo.
In September 2020, the Chinese textbook (''Professional Ethics and Law'') was alleged to inaccurately recount the story with a changed narrative in which Jesus stones the woman, while claiming to be a sinner:
The publisher claims that this was an inauthentic, unauthorized publication of its textbook.
See also
*
List of New Testament verses not included in modern English translations
These New Testament verses not included in modern English translations are verses of the New Testament that exist in older English translations (primarily the King James Version), but do not appear or have been relegated to footnotes in later v ...
*
Parable of the Two Debtors
The Parable of the Two Debtors is a parable of Jesus. It appears in , where Jesus uses the parable to explain that the woman who has anointed him loves him more than his host, because she has been forgiven of greater sins.
A similar anointing in ...
Other questioned passages
*
Comma Johanneum
The Johannine Comma ( la, Comma Johanneum) is an interpolated phrase ( comma) in verses of the First Epistle of John.
The text (with the comma in italics and enclosed by square brackets) in the King James Bible reads:
It became a touchpoint f ...
List of omitted Bible verses
These New Testament verses not included in modern English translations are verses of the New Testament that exist in older English translations (primarily the King James Version), but do not appear or have been relegated to footnotes in later v ...
*
John 21
John 21 is the twenty-first and final chapter of the Gospel of John in the New Testament of the Christian Bible. It contains an account of a post-crucifixion appearance in Galilee, which the text describes as the third time Jesus had appeared ...
*
Textual criticism
Textual criticism is a branch of textual scholarship, philology, and of literary criticism that is concerned with the identification of textual variants, or different versions, of either manuscripts or of printed books. Such texts may range in ...
Notes
References
Sources
* (3rd German edition, translated by George Ogg)
* (6th German edition, translated by George Ogg)
External links
* (NIV)
* (KJV)
Pericope Adulterae in Manuscript Comparator — allows two or more New Testament manuscript editions' readings of the passage to be compared in side by side and unified views (similar to
diff
In computing, the utility diff is a data comparison tool that computes and displays the differences between the contents of files. Unlike edit distance notions used for other purposes, diff is line-oriented rather than character-oriented, but it ...
output) The Pericope de Adultera Homepage Site dedicated to proving that the passage is authentic, with links to a wide range of scholarly published material on both sides about all aspects of this text, and dozens of new articles. New Testament Virtual Manuscript Room the manuscript portal provided by the
Institute for New Testament Textual Research
The Institute for New Testament Textual Research (german: Institut für neutestamentliche Textforschung — INTF) at the University of Münster, Westphalia, Germany, is to research the textual history of the New Testament and to reconstruct its G ...
. This page provides direct access to the primary source material to confirm the evidence presented in the section Manuscript Evidence. Jesus and the Adulteress a detailed study by Wieland Willker. list marginal notes from several versions, extended discussion taken from Samuel P. Tregelles, lists extended excerpts from An Account of the Printed Text of the Greek New Testament (London, 1854), F.H.A. Scrivener, ''A Plain Introduction to the Criticism of the New Testament'' (4th edition. London, 1894), Bruce Metzger, ''A Textual Commentary on the Greek New Testament'' (Stuttgart, 1971), Raymond E. Brown, ''The Gospel According to John'' (i–xii), in the Anchor Bible series (Garden City, New York: Doubleday, 1966). in defense of the pericope de adultera by Edward F. Hills, taken from chapter 6 of his book, ''The King James Version Defended'', 4th edition (Des Moines: Christian Research Press, 1984).
*Chris Keith The Initial Location of the Pericope Adulterae in Fourfold Tradition *David Robert Palmer John 5:3b and the Pericope Adulterae *John David Punch THE PERICOPE ADULTERAE: THEORIES OF INSERTION & OMISSION
{{DEFAULTSORT:Jesus And The Woman Taken In Adultery
Biblical criticismDoctrines and teachings of JesusGospel episodesGospel of JohnWomen in the New TestamentAdulterySecond Temple